Charles w



(No Model.)

0. W. STIMSON.

BUCKLE.

N0. 514,516. I Patented Feb. 13, 1894.

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To a-ZZ whom zit may concern.-

PATENT FFICE.

CHARLES W. STIMSON, OF NEYV YORK, N. Y.

BUCKLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 514,516, dated February13, 1894:.

Application filed beptember 5, 1893. Serial No. 484,840. (No model.)

Be it known that I, CHARLES W. STIMSON, a citizen of the United States,residing in the city and county of New York, State of New York, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Buckles, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My=invention relates to buckles, and particularly to buckles used ongarments; and it consists in the novel forms and arrangement of theparts of the buckle, as is more fully hereinafter described.

The objects of my invention are, first, to provide a buckle which willhold the fabric passed through it firmly, yet without injury thereto;second, to provide means for preventing the buckle from loosening whenthere is no strain upon it; third, to provide means for holding thebuckle open when so desired, without efiort on the part of the personmanipulating the buckle; and fourth, to make thebuckle strong,simple,cheap, and not liable to derangement. These objects are attainedin the buckle herein described and illustrated in the drawings whichaccompany and form a part of this application, in which the samereference numerals indicate the same or correspending parts, and inwhich- Figure 1 is a plan view of the buckle plate detached. Fig. 2 is asectional end view of the same, taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3is a plan view of the tongue-plate of the buckle. Fig. 4 is a plan Viewof the complete buckle, the buckle-plate and tongue-plate having beenunited. Fig. 5 is a sectional end View of the buckle, taken on the line5 5 of Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a plan view of a modified form of buckle, andFig. '7 is an end view of the same,the buckle being' shown partly open.

My buckle is applicable to a great variety of uses, and may be used withleather as well as with fabric; it is, however, more especially intendedfor use on garments, and the form shown in Figs. 1 to 5 inclusive isespecially intended for use as a suspender buckle, while the form shownin Figs. 6 and 7 may be used with the back straps of trousers andwaistcoats, or in garment supporters, or for any other use for which theordinary prong buckle is used.

In thedrawin gs, 10 is the buckle platemhich is preferably formed in onepiece, by stamping or casting. or recessed, as shown, so that the edgeof the tongue-plate, to be hereinafter mentioned, comes somewhat belowthe plane of the top of the buckle-plate. The rear part of thebuckle-plate is rounded into a substantially cylindrical rod, 12, whichforms the pintle of the hinge joint by which the buckleplate andtongue-plate are connected. The rod 12 is provided with a projecting lug13 against which bears a spring projecting from the tongue-plate, aswill be hereinafter described.

14 is the tongue-plate. As with the buckleplate, it is designed to bestamped out of a single piece of metal, which is preferably sheet brassor similar metal, having considerable spring. The front edge of thetongue-plate is turned downward so as to be nearly at right angles tothe beveled surface 11 when the buckle is closed. The edge of the tongueplatemay be serrated or wavy in outline, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, orits edge may be straight, as is the case with the buckle shown in Figs.6 and 7. The serrated or wavy edge is perhaps preferable where used withsoft fabrics which are not readily marked or creased, as in general itwill afford a better hold; while the plain or straight edge ispreferable for leather and for fabrics which are easily injured, asthere is less danger of marking or injuring in any way the surface ofthe leather or fabric.

The tongue'plate is formed with two narrow strips, 15, 15, which, whenthe buckleplate' and tongue-plate are united, are bent around the pintle12 to form the hinge joint connection. A strip 16 is likewise formed inthe ton gue-plate, which is bent downward so that it bears against theunder side of the lug 13. It therefore serves as a spring, tending tohold the buckle closed and to prevent it from opening. The breadth ofthe lug 13 is greater than its depth, so that the stress upon the spring16 is greatest when the tongue plate is substantially at right angles tothe buckle-plate. When,therefore, the buckle is opened to its fullextent, the spring 16, since it rests upon the flat top of the lug 13,holds the buckle open, there being less stress upon it due to the lug 13than when the tongueplate is at right angles to the buckle-plate, andforce must be used to move the tongue- The front part 11 is beveled 1ICO plate to this perpendicular position in closing the buckle.

The rear end of the tongue'plate, that is, the portion below the hingejoint, is triangular in shape. It is provided with a strip 17, cut awayfrom the body of the plate on three sides, and bent into a hook which isadapted to receive the ring or loop of that part of the suspender whichis directly attached to the trousers. The upper end of this hook 17projects slightly below the surface of the tongue-plate, so that thering or loop cannot become detached from the buckle without springingthis hook outward. If desired, this book may be formed upon an extensionof the buckle-plate instead of on the tongueplate.

The buckle shown in Figs. 6 and 7 differs from the one previouslydescribed in that, since it is intended for useas an ordinarygarmentclasp, it is not formed with a hook for the reception of a ringor loop, but is formed with a loop to which fabric may be attached. Itlikewise hasa plain-edged tongue-plate, as previously stated, but theedge of the tongueplate may be serrated if desired. In generalconstruction the buckle is identical with the one previously described.

In using my buckle, it is opened by pressing the tongue-plate outward,and the fabric is inserted from beneath between the beveled or recessededge 11 of the buckle-plate and the edge of the tongue-plate. Thetongueplate is then released, and the spring 16 forces it .down againstthe fabric, which is thus held between the buckle-plate and thetongue-plate. The loose end of the fabric may, ifdesired, be tuckedthrough the opening between the hinges and the hook 17. If force be nowapplied to pull the fabric out of the buckle, since the pressure of thetongue against the fabric has pressed the fabric down somewhat upon therecessed or beveled edge 11, the edge of the tongue is caught by anylittle roughness which always exists on the surface of-cloth or leather,and the strain upon the fabric, though tending to pull the fabric out-ofthe buckle, at the same time presses the tongue-plate yet more firmlydown upon the fabric, and thus prevents slipping of the fabric. If it isdesired to pull more fabric through the buckle, however, when the buckleis closed, this maybe done by pulling upon the loose end of the fabric,for the tongue offers no resistance to the passage of the fabric in thisdirection. In a word, the shape of the tongue and of the buckle-plate issuch that the tongue acts as a pawl, which engages with the fabric andprevents it from passing out of the buckle, but offers no obstruction toits passage through the buckle.

When it is desired to release the fabric from the buckle, thetongue-plate is pressed outward, so that it no longer bears against thefabric.

When used as a suspender buckle, the ring of the suspender is attachedto the buckle by placing it over the end of the hook 17 and pullingdownward, when the hook will spring outward sufficiently to permit thering-to pass downward to the bottom of the book. When it is desired tocast off this ring, this may be done by pulling the ring upward.

Having thus completely described my invention, what Iclaim, and desire:to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a buckle, the combination, with a buckle-plate the front edge ofwhich is ibeveled-or recessed, of atongue-plate hinged to saidbuckle-plateand having its front edge bent downward, a lug projectingfromthepintle of said buckle-plate, anda spring, bearing against saidlug, and adapted to press the tongue-plate against the buckle-plate,substantially as described.

2. In a buckle, the combination, with a buckle-plate the froutedge ofwhich is beveledor recessed, of a tongue-plate hinged to saidbuckle-plate and having its frontedge bent downward, a spring adapted topressgthe edge of said tongue-plate against said buckleplate, and aclasp, formed upon the rear end of said tongue-plate, and adapted ,toreceive and hold a ring or loop, substantially as described.

In witness whereof I hereunto set my hand in the presence of twowitnesses.

CHARLES WV. STIMSON.

Witnesses:

RALPH S. RoUNDs, H. M. MARBLE.

